Vodafone Group PLC on Monday welcomed its newest major shareholder, after Emirates Telecommunications Group Co PJSC took a 9.8% shareholding but said but it has no plans to make a takeover offer.

UAE-based Emirates Telecom was formerly known as Etisalat and now goes by the moniker ’e&’.

On Saturday, it said subsidiary Atlas 2022 Holdings Ltd purchased 2.77 billion Vodafone shares for about $4.4 billion, praising the quality of the business and its brand.

Vodafone shares were up 3.1% at 121.46 pence in London early Monday. It has a £34.18 billion market capitalisation.

‘The transaction is fully aligned to e&’s announced ambition to be a global player in telecom and technology and to increase its exposure to international markets,’ Emirates Telecom said in its statement on Saturday.

‘e& is fully supportive of Vodafone’s board and existing management team and its current business strategy announced in November 2021,’ it added.

‘It does not seek board representation and is confident about the company’s ability to unlock value from its organic business activity and other potential strategic transactions. e& plans to be a long-term and supportive shareholder in Vodafone and is not seeking to exert control or influence the company’s board or management team.

‘Similarly, e& has no intention to make an offer for Vodafone.’

The 9.8% stake makes Emirates Telecom the biggest single shareholder of Vodafone. The previous two biggest owners were BlackRock Inc with a 6.9% stake and Norges Bank with 3.0%, according to Morningstar.

‘We look forward to building a long-term relationship with Etisalat,’ Vodafone said on Monday, adding that it will provide an update on its strategic plans alongside its annual results on Tuesday.

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